


Strands of Comfort

by armouredescort



Category: Castlevania: Mirror of Fate, 悪魔城ドラキュラ | Castlevania Series
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Hair Brushing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-18
Updated: 2017-11-18
Packaged: 2019-02-04 02:17:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12761049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/armouredescort/pseuds/armouredescort
Summary: Gabriel plays with Alucard's hair. That's all there is to it.





	Strands of Comfort

**Author's Note:**

> For [this prompt](https://castlevaniakinkmeme.dreamwidth.org/979.html?thread=24787#cmt24787) on the kinkmeme because I finished Mirror of Fate for the first time yesterday, and I'm still goddamn sad about the Belmonts.

How Alucard had ended up on the floor, leaning against his father's knees in an almost childish way, was a mystery to them both. They did not remember. Why Alucard remained on the floor was an easier question to answer: Dracul, prince of darkness, fiend of the night, and eternal enemy of the Brotherhood of Light, was playing with his hair.

Needless to say that Alucard was pleased, quietly so, and encouraged it by leaning closer, wanting more.

His father's claws teased his scalp, scraping lightly in his white hair, twisting locks around his fingers and letting it unravel slowly. Alucard sighed, more a deeper exhale than anything else.

There was a pause. Alucard made a grunt, pushing his head back, tilting to stare at his father.

"It feels nice," said Alucard.

Wordlessly, Gabriel resumed playing. It was soft. Not the coarse texture of his own, but smooth like Marie's. There was so much of her in Trevor, tiny, simple things, like the way the light caught his face, or a mannerism with a flick of his eyes and tilt to his head.

If he had only taken a damn moment to stop and look at Alucard as Trevor, defiant, angry, burning with revenge, then Gabriel might have seen past his own pride and recognised that face, that nose, that hair, _those eyes_. Then Alucard might not have been cursed, broken free of such machinations and left to live a life as human. Left to raise his son. Grow old. Die.

But then Gabriel would have been alone.

And the world might not have survived that.

Alucard tossed his head, trying to blow a piece of hair from his face which had fallen into his eyes. Gabriel scooped it back, bundling the hair over Alucard's shoulders, and summoned a brush to his hands. While it had been a while, Gabriel knew enough to start from the bottom. It seemed unlikely that a vampire like Alucard would have tangled hair, but Gabriel brushed it carefully anyway, and his son made no protests.

The brush snagged only once or twice on a leaf or twig that had been eaten by Alucard's mass of hair, but it was otherwise an exercise done for show.

They were both content. A creature entered the throne room, carrying a bundle of rags. It was short, coming barely to Alucard's eye level, but it crouched closer to the ground as it approached. It held the bundle to Gabriel, steadfastly ignoring that Alucard wasn't standing at Gabriel's side.

"What is this?" asked Gabriel, plucking the bundle from the creature.

He unwrapped it, revealing a black box inlaid with red-lacquered timber and tiny clear gems – diamonds.

"It is for the princeling," said the creature, rasping like an axe to a whetstone. "The moonlight princeling. So fine. An apology for throwing fire."

Gabriel opened the box, stared at it, and then handed it to Alucard. It was a carved dragon clutching at a pin, lying on a bed of flowers and thorns made of gems shaved so thin, it looked like it would shatter in his hands. The dragon's scales glimmered, black – no, a forest green now that Alucard tilted the box – claws tipped in gold, a pearl-hearted flower clutched in each foot. It felt too fragile for him, and at the same time it was for him.

The dragon had eyes that reflected blue light one way and yellow the other. There was no doubt as to who it was meant to be.

The creature was already scuttling away, not waiting for an answer. Perhaps they were afraid of an unfavourable reaction.

Alucard handed the box to his father.

"I don't know how to use it," he said.

It was a lie, of course. Sypha had used such ornaments to keep her hair up, although none had been as fine as this.

He simply wanted his father to put it in for him. Once it was done, their peace would be broken for Gabriel had nothing left to do with Alucard's hair, and Alucard had no reason to stay seated.

"Stay still," said Gabriel.

He lifted Alucard's hair, fussing with it until he was satisfied, and slipped the dragon's pin out. Hair back, he could see Alucard's face better, even his ears were showing for once. Pinning the ornament in, Gabriel paused.

The young dragon.

That's what Alucard was.

Very carefully, so as to not startle his son, Gabriel leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the crown of Alucard's head.

"There's work to be done," said Alucard. "I should leave."

He arose, touched the ornament, and turned to give his father a kiss on the cheek before disappearing to whatever business that hastened his step.


End file.
